Russia has finally confirmed its bid for Eurovision, which will take place next year in Kyiv. That is, a Russian participant or participant, selected, as always, behind closed doors by a narrow group of music managers, will go to Ukraine, although, to put it mildly, they are not welcome there. Or rather, they wait, but not with open arms, but with obvious hostility.
We would not have been allowed into the competition at all, but Eurovision itself showed a principled position, obliging Kyiv to provide Russian participant appropriate guarantee. Nevertheless, the host side will, of course, have a lot of provocative antics regarding the singer with the Russian tricolor. And here the question arises: why do we need this Eurovision?
If Russian performer will be sent in order to win a victory at a competition that is far from being the most prestigious, then this is unlikely. Sergey Lazarev essentially won the 2016 competition, receiving the majority of audience votes. But in the end he remained only third, since Eurovision introduced another barrier - the voting of judges. Those who preferred an overtly political song about tragic fate Crimean Tatars, performed by Ukrainian Jamala. In the political situation that is now developing in Europe around our country, it is naive to count on anything different in 2017.
If the intention of those who are pushing for Russia’s participation in Eurovision 2017 is to prove that we are not isolated, then the reasonableness of the decision is even less obvious. Firstly, we are in no way isolated on this front and cannot be isolated by definition. Secondly, Eurovision has no or almost no weight among professionals; not one of the winners of this competition has become a world-class superstar.
Constantly inventing new restrictions on Eurovision for Russia, the Ukrainian side seeks to use the competition, which will be held next year on its territory, according to a complete anti-Russian program. For example, it has already been stated that singers from the sanctioned area will not be allowed into Kyiv. Ukrainian list. Who else will be added to this list - who knows? In principle, anyone and at any time. Even two days before the competition.
They openly want to insult us. Why help provocateurs in this matter? In the name of what goals that are significant for society?
If we find the courage not to participate in the PACE sessions, against the background of which Eurovision looks like just a fair booth, then we need to make a decision on this musical front.
Let them sing on their own. It's time to show character.
The truth is, most likely, it’s just a matter of money. This concludes some of our defining musical forces earns a lot. And this force has absolutely no regard for any politics. It solves its corporate problems with the help of the Russian flag. Such, for example, as the Meladze brothers decided, who once managed to push the Ukrainian nationalist Prikhodko to compete for Russia at Eurovision. Only because their main business interests lie in Ukraine. Now Prikhodko is either demanding that Russians not be allowed to attend Eurovision, or he is offering to immediately assign a convoy to them.
Prikhodko didn’t win anything then. And we gain nothing from being on the show. Can't we really find something to watch instead of Eurovision one Sunday night?..
In the photo: Anastasia Prikhodko once performed at Eurovision for Russia.
International music competition called Eurovision, the rules and conditions of the competition of which we will describe below, is the largest competition, which over the past few years has turned into a long-awaited show. Each time the participants and voting results surprise the audience, and no one knows how the project will end next year.
Eurovision - the story of Australia's appearance there
Eurovision project as International competition songs was organized for the very first time in the mid-fifties of the last century in Switzerland. At that time, it became an alternative version of a similar event held in Italy, the Sanremo Festival (still held by Italians, but not so regularly).
The organizers decided to invite only representatives of those countries that are members of the European Broadcasting Union to participate in it. In this regard, it is incorrect to call the project exclusively European, since the participants also include musicians from Israel, Egypt, Cyprus and other countries that are not geographically related to Europe (for example, Australia).
Why is Australia participating in Eurovision? The decision that a representative from this state, which is neither part of Europe nor a member of the European Broadcasting Union, will participate in the competition was made in February 2015. The reason for this exclusion was two factors:
- Firstly, the competition itself is extremely popular among Australian viewers, as noted by Mark Ebeid, director of the SBS channel;
- Secondly, 2015 marked the sixtieth anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest, and the invitation to distant Australia was a kind of festive surprise for the whole world.
That same year, Australia was represented in the competition by a charming singer named Guy Sebastian, who reached the final without participating in the preliminary stages of the competition with the song Tonight Again.
Eurovision rules
Despite the fact that the Eurovision Song Contest has existed for several decades, the rules for its holding have changed only a few times in its history. The extreme changes were related to the principles of choosing the best song.
To date key rules international music competition are as follows:
- The participating country is represented by one singer who prepared a single song;
- The performance is performed live, the timing allotted for the performance is no more than four minutes;
- The competition song can be shown to listeners only from September of the previous year;
- The age of the competition participants is from sixteen years, younger singers can perform as part of a similar project for children - “ Junior Eurovision»;
- Absolutely any singer can be a representative of the participating country, regardless of nationality and even citizenship (viewers often have questions about why, for example, a Ukrainian performed from Russia or vice versa);
- The order of performances is determined by drawing lots;
- Regarding the show itself: no more than 6 people can be on stage during a participant’s performance; the use of animals is prohibited.
- Viewer voting begins from the first moments of the first performance and ends fifteen minutes after the last.
Since the late 2000s, in addition to audience voting, the voting of a professional jury has been involved in shaping the results. The purpose of this innovation is to avoid the “neighborly” principle, according to which friendly countries usually cast votes for each other. The group of professionals is formed as follows: from each country there are five people from such fields of activity as composing, songwriting, music production, radio DJing, and artistic arts. Together they make up the final ranking of songs.
The points are added up and placed in order. The winner is the country that scores greatest number points. She, in turn, gets the opportunity to conduct new competition in your own country. The singer receives a contract with the European Broadcasting Union and undertakes to participate in all events organized by him.
Since about fifty countries participate in Eurovision every year, in each of which the most worthy representative must be chosen, the competition is divided into several stages. Semi-finals are organized for all countries except the host and the so-called “Big Five”. Those countries that took places from 1 to 10 at the previous stage participate in the final. Total number There are 26 participants represented in the finals. Of these, twenty are the leaders of the semi-finals, five are members of the “Big Five” and one is from the host country.
Viewer voting at Eurovision
Viewer voting became possible only in 1997, when the organizers decided to conduct a kind of experiment, giving the audience the right to choose a favorite. Previously, only members of the professional jury were competent. Since 1998, the voting format has been paid SMS and phone calls, and the national jury acted as a “safety net” in case of technical failure.
Every country that sent its participant to Eurovision has the right to vote.. As a result, all received votes cast for a particular song are counted. Points are distributed as follows:
- 12 points - for the performance that received greatest number audience votes;
- 10 - second in recognition;
- 8 - third and further up to one point.
To prevent the already lengthy event from stretching out throughout the night, the hosts announce out loud only the participants who have scored maximum quantity points - from 8 to 12, the rest can be tracked on the interactive scoreboard.
You can also become the one who will decide the fate of your favorite country at Eurovision by deciding to vote for your favorite. Today this can be done by sending an SMS or calling.
They haven't written much about the Eurovision Song Contest! This event was no longer perceived as a competition at all. Why? Yes, because it is mixed with politics, and acid freaks appear on the stage, which are simply disgusting to look at. It is not surprising that in Russia at the state level there was a proposal to completely abandon this unnecessary action...A proposal to boycott the Eurovision contest was made by State Duma deputy Vitaly Milonov, known for his strange judgments. The politician addressed general director Channel One with a call to boycott the “competition”.
“The participation of our artists in this competition is unacceptable in any form. It is impossible to imagine that Soviet citizens in 1943 would have gone to the conventional music competition "Reich Vision"! Unfortunately, in the current realities, we are unwanted guests in a state captured by fanatics who dream of destroying all the good things that exist between our people and the Ukrainian people,” Milonov noted.
In addition, Milonov highlighted several points, on the basis of which he came to the conclusion that Russia should not be represented in Kyiv in May of this year. Firstly, the parliamentarian noted that Ukrainian politicians are pursuing “blatant anti-Russian and Russophobic policies.” Secondly, I drew attention to the fact that “the bloodshed in Donbass does not subside civil war" Thirdly, he emphasized that Russian citizens are treated with contempt, at a minimum, and businessmen are even subject to “discriminatory harassment.”
In general, if Vitaly Milonov had any specific proposals, like a bill banning walks in swimsuits or an initiative banning cycling without a license, then in at the moment The parliamentarian raises a very relevant question.
One way or another, the Eurovision Song Contest has already lost most of the audience in Russia due to the “political games” of the organizers. Extremely odious comrades become participants. In addition, this year the event is taking place in Kyiv - in the place where it has been said more than once that the competition could be disrupted due to scandals in the organizing committee and unjustified waste of funds allocated for preparation.
And most importantly, the fact that Russia ignores Eurovision will definitely make it worse for none of the Russians. Or maybe other countries will come to their senses, realizing that this competition has not lived up to its purpose for a long time.
Anton Orlovsky,
especially for the site
Russia can turn away from Europe as much as it wants with its cheeses and liberal values, but this does not apply to the large-scale pseudo-musical competition “Eurovision”. In 2015, Polina Gagarina, a veteran of music competitions and winner of the second Star Factory, was sent to the anniversary competition. Although Eurovision today can hardly boast of a truly interesting music program, few remain on the sidelines. During the competition, everyone, from Russia to Iceland, is literally seized with a fever, comparable only to large sports championships. The final will take place tomorrow - in anticipation of it, we’ll figure out why everyone is still crazy about Eurovision and what’s really behind this competition.
Dasha Tatarkova
Where did Eurovision come from?
It was invented after the Second World War in order to unite nations experiencing the results of a tragic event and concentrate on the joys of peacetime. Eurovision took place for the first time in 1956, as planned by the European Broadcasting Union. The festival in San Remo was taken as an example. The competition was held in the company's homeland, Switzerland, 7 countries participated, and the organizing country won.
Since then, the Eurovision Song Contest has become one of the oldest and largest television programs in the world: it has already been watched by more than 100 million people this year, and at its peak the audience of the program reached 600 million viewers. The ideological mission of the organizers - to unite nations - has been fulfilled: the main unity in which the participating countries merge is aggressive rivalry, especially noticeable today, when any sneeze of the participants is immediately spread throughout the Internet.
Eurovision today is a spectacular show, somewhere at the intersection of Cirque du Soleil and reality competitions like The Voice. This is not yet a Lady Gaga concert, but it seems that everything is heading towards that. Of course, this was not always the case: at first the competition was very simple, the participants simply went on stage to the microphone and performed very modest and calm numbers by today’s standards; after all, we are talking about the fifties. Since then, the intensity of the performances has been increasing.
Although for Eurovision it was as if neither rock and roll, nor punk, nor other musical revolutions existed, it absorbed innovations in non-conflict pop music with pleasure. The effectiveness of what was happening on stage changed along with the volume, until eventually the formats familiar to us today were established. Note that the manner of singing in English also did not come immediately, but eventually globalization took its toll.
How to get to Eurovision?
The name is misleading: it seems as if membership in the competition is guaranteed only to countries that are members of the European Union. In fact, this is not so: the competition involves different countries, not geographically tied to Europe. Applications are submitted by TV channels that are members of the European Broadcasting Union, which created the competition. Each country, or rather a television company, can nominate only one participant, having previously conducted its selection at home in a format convenient for it.
Thus, the composition of participants changes from year to year, depending on who decides to apply. However, some members, for example the Vatican, have never taken advantage of such an opportunity, which is a pity - a representative of the Pope would do well to shake up the whole event. Today, Eurovision participants are mainly artists who are familiar with music competitions first-hand, or those who have passed the local selection based on a principle similar to the main competition. This is exactly why winners or participants of reality talent shows like our “Star Factory” often go to represent the country.
After the TV companies have selected their representatives and the song, the semi-finals begin. They were invented quite recently (the first circle appeared in 2004, and the second in 2008), since the number of participants has increased significantly. In previous years, potential competitors for next year were eliminated based on current Eurovision scores and requirements such as broadcasting, so the semi-finals now give many more countries a shot at the top. In addition to the contenders fighting for the opportunity to reach the final, Eurovision has its own elite, to whom this right was initially assigned. Since 2000, these have been the “big four”: Great Britain, Germany, France and Spain. In 2010, Italy joined them, and in 2015, Australia also joined as an exception. Plus, a place in the final is always reserved for the winning country of the previous year.
Why is the music at Eurovision so bad?
The songs of the participants are always one hundred percent radio hits. Nowadays, from year to year, they bet either on a cheerful pop melody, or on a soulful ballad, or on local exoticism, at least in the eyes of other countries. Eurovision likes to boast that it gave rise to the worldwide fame of Celine Dion, ABBA and Julio Iglesias. However, in a crowded music market, becoming a global pop star simply because of winning a competition is becoming more and more difficult every year. Those who try to break the paradigm of plastic songs performed by young and attractive people are much more memorable.
Few people remember just the pop songs that won the different years, but the heavy metal of Lordi, which Finland unexpectedly put up, Conchita Wurst, over whom the whole of Europe quarreled, or the slightly ridiculous but charming “Buranovsky Babushki” are still remembered. 2015 is no exception in this sense. This time Finland is again trying to push the boundaries of the tight competition - they sent the punk band Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät, whose participants were diagnosed with developmental delays, and the representative of Poland Monika Kuszynska will be the first to perform at the competition in a wheelchair.
How does voting work?
The votes are divided in half between the audience and the jury. Each country selects 10 favorite numbers, and then points are distributed depending on the popularity of the track in each country, from 12 to zero. The method of voting has changed over time, at first it was decided solely by the jury, then it was only the audience's choice. Since 2009, a mixed system has been established: both spectators and special jury professionals from each country influence the outcome of the competition. To vote today, you don’t have to call or send an SMS - just download the official Eurovision app. The counting of votes takes place during the out-of-competition final presentation of the organizing country. This year the closing song will be performed by Conchita Wurst.
No matter how hard the founders of Eurovision try to avoid favoritism, since audience choice began to turn into numbers, it became obvious that everyone primarily votes out of geopolitical sympathy. Neighbors vote for neighbors and are deeply offended if someone violates this order. It even has its own memes - just remember the guy with the saxophone, whose performance at Eurovision was turned into into a 10 hour video. Great Britain, which performs very poorly from year to year, is viewed rather condescendingly, despite victories in the distant past, and Russia is treated with caution. The Tolmachev sisters, who performed last year, were booed in public domestic policy country that made waves throughout the world.
Why did Australia become Europe?
In 2015, the competition is being held in Vienna, since last year’s winner was Conchita Wurst, representing Austria. Eurovision 2015 is the 60th, and in honor of the anniversary, the organizers wanted to make some spectacular gesture - they decided to invite Australia to participate, where the show has been popular for many years. The SBS television company, which represented the country at the competition in 2015, has been broadcasting Eurovision for more than thirty years.
Despite the time difference, Australians will vote on equal terms with everyone else. The choice of a local lucky winner for the competition is quite natural. The Australian jury, in accordance with the unspoken tradition of modern times, decided that it was best to entrust such an important task to the winner of the first Australian “Idol” - Guy Sebastian. However, what will happen if Australia wins is not clear. Since it is participating as an exception, the country will not be able to bring the competition home, although, perhaps, Australia simply does not count on winning. Pageant officials have however stated that if Australia emerges as the winner, its broadcaster SBS will have to choose a European country for the next competition, but whether Australia will then still be a participant has not yet been decided.
What is the essence of the competition if not the music?
The Eurovision Song Contest is anything but a musical event: behind the plastic facade it combines several diverse phenomena, only hiding behind music as a form of existence. At the same time, for ordinary Europeans this is the only vote that, despite all its obvious political overtones, remains exciting and fun. Moreover, other elections may envy his transparency. Countries vote for their neighbors and friends, who are often closer rather than further away, so that the finger-pointing process explains the distribution of political likes in and around Europe.
“Eurovision” has become a litmus test not only for political ideas, but also for a certain average taste. Not all countries send someone more or less famous in their homeland to the competition, but most of the radio-friendly tracks talk about what kind of pop music, in the opinion of TV channel producers, is most profitable and will definitely attract attention in their homeland. It is more difficult to judge other countries, but if you remember who Russia sent away, everything falls into place: “Buranovskie Grandmothers” and Dima Bilan talk equally a lot about the preferences of our compatriots.
“Eurovision” has become a competition in a cube: it combines popular reality shows like “Idol”, “The Voice”, “Star Factory”, dance battles and even beauty contests. Titles songs about love, peace and unity - like the lines of answers from contestants fighting for a sparkling tiara. It’s just like in “Miss Congeniality”: the participants dream of “world peace.” The competitiveness of what is happening makes Eurovision something of a sport for everyone. The language of music is universal: to watch it, you don’t need to understand the rules, and to cheer, you don’t need to know the teams or the results of previous selections. It's simple: one country, one participant and a sea of emotions.
Behind all this, the music itself fades into the background. The song lasts three minutes and no more, there is a maximum of six people on stage. The fact that songs and not something else are competing is rather nominal, especially today, when the performance itself plays no less a role. Just remember Alexander Rybak from Norway, who was inspired largely by the fact that he played the violin while gymnasts jumped around him. The diversity of world music exists separately from Eurovision. Here, year after year, they present dance tracks that go straight to the Turkish disco, or power ballads, a kind of pure technical soul for white people.
This is very easy-to-understand music that can be easily broken down into its components: here's the beat, here's the verse, here's the bridge; the singer hits clean notes than stronger voice- so much the better. Producers treat creating a hit as a matter of honor, in which there is no room for experimentation: the track must hit all the proven criteria. pain points, and nothing else. Perhaps this is precisely why solo performers 28 victories belong to women, and only 7 to men. An impressive ballad just typical of women's repertoire.
When did Russia participate and who represented it?
For political and ideological reasons, at the time the competition appeared, the USSR did not even think about sending anyone to sing for the country. During Gorbachev's reforms, in 1987, the USSR Minister of Education proposed sending Valery Leontyev to Eurovision - to establish contact with the Western capitalist world, but no one supported him. Not all countries of the former Soviet Union they got a place in the competition just as easily as Russia did after the collapse of the Union. Many are still refused participation due to political and economic considerations, fearing that the applicant TV channel will not be able to adequately fund the event on its part.
For the first time, Russia was represented at Eurovision by singer Maria Katz under the pseudonym Judith. After her from us to the competition went the most different participants: at first they tried to rely on local figures like Alla Pugacheva and Philip Kirkorov, but their performances turned out to be among the most disastrous Russian numbers. Since then, Russia has had several refusals to participate, and then several shock hits. Alsou earned second place, Tatu - third. Before winning, Dima Bilan came close to second place in 2006; in 2012, “Buranovskie Babushki” ended up there. The “Silver” group became a prize-winner in 2007, finishing in third place.
Russia's overall score, considering its recent participation and even one victory, is very good. In the overall ranking we are in 16th place, second only to the oldest participants in the competition. Russia has become a Eurovision winner six times, taking one of the first three places; Dima Bilan brought the competition to his homeland once - in 2008. It's telling how the political climate within a country influences who is chosen to represent the entertainment industry. In very recent 2009, Russia was represented by Anastasia Prikhodko, who sang in Russian and Ukrainian - unfortunately, such friendship of peoples is now difficult to imagine on the stage of the official TV channel. But if last year they sent the extremely positive Tolmachev sisters, this time they decided to loosen their grip a little. Polina Gagarina allows herself to take a selfie with Conchita Wurst and, despite the rather mediocre song, she does not lose her charisma and gives her all on stage.
Who made it to the finals and who can win?
This year's semi-finals included 33 countries. After the selections, 20 winners will compete for the title of winner, as well as 5 sponsoring countries, Germany, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, France, as well as Australia, plus the host country - Austria. The final finalists were revealed tonight after the second semi-final. The countries also received serial numbers of performances: Polina Gagarina will sing third from the end.
Chances Russian singer rated as one of the highest in the competition. Around Eurovision, as around any competition, there has long been a huge betting industry and a pool of bookers offers similar estimates of the likely outcome. So far, according to one estimate, Gagarin is in second place, losing the championship to Sweden; according to another, our chances of winning are still less, somewhere around 10 to 1, after Estonia, Sweden and Australia.